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Darrelle Revis Holdout: Jets Have Zero Leverage

August 1, 2010
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All-Pro cornerback Darrelle Revis made it clear since the spring that he wants a new contract, and he spent all summer openly contemplating a holdout. But it was unclear until Sunday evening whether Revis would follow through, saying in recent weeks that he didn't know his plans.

At 5:30 on Sunday afternoon, as the deadline for Jets players to report to camp passed, Darrelle Revis officially became a training-camp holdout.

Revis has repeatedly stated his unhappiness with the organization and with his current contract. He has three seasons left on the rookie contract he signed after he was selected 14th overall in the 2007 NFL Draft and he's scheduled to make $1 million this season making him one of the lowest-paid defensive backs on the team this season.

Darrelle Revis wants to be the league's highest-paid cornerback, a distinction that belongs to Nnamdi Asomugha, who signed a three-year, $45.3 million extension last offseason.

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Jets GM, Mike Tannenbaum, admits that Revis has outplayed his original contract, and that he was the one who proposed reworking the deal in the winter. Tannenbaum said that in the past three days, the team has offered Revis both a long-term and a short-term deal and both were rejected. The Jets GM also stated that he has offered to meet with the All-Pro at the cornerback's home, but Revis' camp has refused to meet.

While Tannenbaum refused to get into the specifics of the contract he did comment on holdout.

"The lines of communication are open and we remain committed to finding a solution that makes sense for him and makes sense for us," general manager Mike Tannenbaum said. "The two things that we've all agreed upon is that Darrelle has outplayed his contract and it needed to be addressed, and he has three years to go on his contract."

By NFL rules, Darrelle Revis will be fined $16,523 for every day he misses, but that's not all. By holding out Revis waived a clause in his contract which would have guaranteed him $20 million over the last two years of his deal.

There are other notable Jets seeking contracts as well. Center Nick Mangold was the most notable, saying he thought that showing up would be putting his "best foot forward" to start the season. Linebacker David Harris, Revis' roommate, also wants a new deal, but he was in attendance as well.

In Revis' absence, first-round pick Kyle Wilson who signed a five-year, $13 million deal late Saturday night will get time with the first-team defense along with Antonio Cromartie and Dwight Lowery.

The Take

There is absolutely no way that the Jets will let this linger. They can't afford to. It's not often that you can say that a player can hold a team hostage in sports, but in this case, Revis has all the cards and the Jets can only bluff.

The entire defense (and success of the team) is predicated on Darrelle Revis taking away the other teams most desired option in the passing game. Revis allows the coaching staff, the other 10 men on the defensive side of the ball, the offense and special teams to all do things they would otherwise not be able to do.

A healthy Darrelle Revis places the NY Jets are on a collision course with the Baltimore Ravens to see who will be the AFC representative in the Super Bowl. A unhealthy or un-present Darrelle Revis for any length of time makes the Jets a question mark to even make the playoffs. - Mike Cardano

Mike is the founder of Around the Horn Baseball and Xtra Point Football.